Internet Psychologist
On September 11th 2001 I was on holiday with my wife Cathy and my son Elliot, who was nearly two years old at the time. We had been out to lunch and got back at just after 2pm. Elliot wanted to watch a video, so we switched on the TV …
Chinese censors are tightening the rules about the distribution of news within China. According to The Times, news organisations, such as Reuters, mist first get their material approved by the Chinese authorities prior to distribution. Restricting access to news is fairly typical in authoritarian states or in countries running under …
So, Intel has announced that 10% of its worldwide workforce – or 10,500 people – are to lose their jobs. The aim is to make the company more competitive and save money. In recent years, Intel’s main competitor, AMD, has been a real force to be reckoned with. However, what’s …
Rupert Murdoch’s News International launched a free newspaper in London, called The London Paper. There are already several free newspapers handed out to commuters on the rail networks and on the streets. There is also a paid-for evening newspaper in London, the Evening Standard. Clearly News International wants a piece …
Two new surveys have come my way in the last few days. One showed that less than 25% of all businesses offer their products and services for sale via the Internet. The other survey suggested that 71% of people buy goods and services online. Indeed, by 2010 in the UK …
A study of teachers in the UK has confirmed the educational benefits of the Internet. The research has shown that the use of the Internet in the classroom helped all pupils, regardless of ability. Furthermore, teachers believe that the Internet has helped pupils gain better exam results. The reasons behind …
Today is International Blogging Day. The idea is that it brings more of a high profile to blogging. Apparently we are all meant to link to five other blogs today so that we can spread the word of blogging. But there is more to it than this. If you are …
In a traditional shop everything you do is controlled by the retailer. The route you take through the store has been pre-planned. Retail psychologists observer shopper behaviour and help retailers maximise their sales by having the right offers in the right place. It is no coincidence that most supermarkets are …
Yesterday one of my clients called me about Wordtracker. She was using Wordtracker to try and find keywords she could use in one of her web sites. However, she was having difficulty in finding any words that had reasonable numbers of searches or little competition. Discussing things with her I …
Recently I was interviewed for my local TV station in the Thames Valley. You can watch the full interview online at: http://www.thamesvalleypod.tv/
Research on Internet dating could help Internet marketers. The study, conducted at Queen’s University, Belfast, Northern Ireland, shows that people who use online dating sites attempt to present their real selves, rather than an idealised or false self. Earlier studies on the use of chat rooms showed that people who …
New psychology research at Princeton University provides a clue to Internet marketers about what they need to concentrate on. The study was conducted to find out how long we need to make up our mind about a person by looking at their face. It has been known for some time …
Recent research suggests people leave a web site 50 milliseconds after they enter it, unless they see some reason to linger. In other words, people are making an instant decision as to whether or not your site provides them with what they want even before they’ve had a chance to …
Several psychological studies have shown that there is a social feature of human beings which psychologists call “the rule of reciprocity”. What this means is that if I meet you in a social situation and offer to get you a coffee, for example, you feel more positive towards me. If …
At the moment I’m in Orlando, Florida, USA, attending the annual convention of the National Speakers Association. There are 1,700 people here and much of the coffee-room chat is about maximising the use of the Internet for the speaking business. But one delegate, Mike Stewart (The Internet Audio Guy) said …